LOL, yup, as I told you earlier, Maz, she's a darling little thing!
Kittens like to 'pile' with other kittens or their mama and your little Mikka will most likely want to sleep on or near you or Mary Rose most of the time. Mine do!
Merlin used to only sleep up against me but now, 6 yrs later, he finds places nearby or within sight unless he's cold. Inga always likes to be close by, but not on the bed most of the time.
Some suggestions: Get the catnip scent dissipated from the little bed you bought. Catnip's a stimulant and she's not likely to SLEEP there if she smells it. She may also be too young for catnip to effect her just now, so don't be surprised if she doesn't respond much to it. Some cats love it, some ignore it and some go bonkers...I've had all the above types over the years!
Put the bed someplace near one of you (in a corner of the room). She'll probably check it out but most likely won't sleep in it unless you aren't home or a mood strikes her. [img]smile.gif[/img] She may end up prefering a different type of spot to sleep or love that bed to pieces. It's sort of hit or miss with cats. I bought a kitty 'condo' for mine to play on and scratch at etc when I first got a kitten and he wouldn't go near the thing. Months after I bought it I mentioned giving it away to a friend and danged if that cat didn't crawl all over the condo and start sleeping on top of it the next week! LOL Many years and a new set of cats later and I'm just considering throwing it away because it's been used to death!
Try a few different blankets for her (small bits of fleece or quilting are nice) and rub them on yourself and your sister. Mikka will find it reassuring. You can put them anyplace you want her to sleep or on furniture you don't want her on but know she's going to be on anyway!
It's kind of a 'learn what she likes' sort of thing when they're kittens. Like people, they have preferences in sleep spots and toys.
With litter pan- my suggestion from experience and hanging out with 30+ cat owners and vets on a mail list for the last 15+yrs is to put one pan out either where you want it in the end (someplace off the beaten track- cats usually like some privacy) or very near to where you want it eventually and keep showing her when she starts to 'hunt' for a place to go. You've probably already figured out the signs by now. Also, for her sanity and yours, keep her confined to one room or area (where the box is)when you aren't around unless your place is fairly small. Kittens can't hold it like older cats can and they usually have to go NOW when the urge hits, so running all over looking for the box is gonna mean accidents. But once she learns where it is, you can bet she'll head for it every time. Don't move the box around from room to room or even location within a room at first- that's confusing and likely to mess up her training. I did keep a tiny box in the living room when one of my cats was a kitten (he'd been taken away from his mother before being weaned and was not litter trained), but I moved it a little at a time over a few weeks til it was next to the big one that became the permanent box. The one day I had the permanent box moved to clean it, my poor little kitten ran his little self to the spot where it was supposed to be, cried a few times and piddled RIGHT WHERE THE BOX usually sat! I was so proud of him! LOL
Your kitten's a real cutie and I bet you'll be wrapped 'round her little paw in no time. [img]graemlins/hehe.gif[/img]
edit: another type of bed that I've had really good luck with is a wicker basket one with a low side on one end and a cushion or blankets in it. All of the cats in my house over the years have slept in one that I got about 19 yrs ago at some point or other. They like feeling something on all three sides but having immediate access in or out.
[ 09-06-2004, 10:39 PM: Message edited by: Cloudbringer ]